Whisky Lullaby
by completewithtypos
Summary: It's a rather depressing end to PD2. Another what if they didn't get married? This is my first fanfic, I'm new here. Please R&R. THANKS!


_Whisky Lullaby_

_She put him out_

_Like the burning end of a midnight cigarette_

_She broke his heart_

_He spent his whole life trying to forget_

_We watched him drink his pain away_

_A little at a time_

_But he never could get drunk enough_

_To get her off his mind_

Joseph turned and left through the door he came in. Clarisse watched in despair as he disappeared into the night. He would surely never forgive her for this. The flash of anger, and disappointment in his eyes moments earlier had startled her. Perhaps she had underestimated the depth of his love. But then, couldn't he see how it complicated more an already impossibly complicated situation?

Joseph began to walk. He had no idea where he was going, and soon he found himself down at the lake. Sitting at the edge in the dark, skipping stones into the ebony water, he reflected on what had just happened. All he wanted was to be able to love her openly, without all the secrecy. He just wanted to take care of her, and spend the rest of his life with the only person he had ever loved. But she had shattered that dream in those three little words, "yes, I have." Her tone had been regretful, her eyes burdened as she looked up at him. His heart had broken into thousands of little pieces, that could never be put back together.

Weeks passed. Mia's not quite wedding came and went. Although officially retired, Joseph couldn't bring himself to leave the palace, he still loved her too much. And so, he began to help Shades reorganize the security system, update it, and breathe some life into it. After a month or so, Shades began to notice changes in Joseph. He was more irritable than usual. Often he came to work late, and left early, locking himself in his rooms.

Then came the day he didn't show at all.

_Until the night_

_He put that bottle to his head_

_And pulled the trigger_

_And finally drank away her memory_

_Life is short_

_But this time it was bigger_

_Than the strength he had to get up off his knees_

_We found him with his face down in the pillow_

_With a note that said_

_"I'll love her til I die"_

_And when we buried him beneath the willow_

_The angels sang a whisky lullaby_

_La la la la la la la_

_la la la la la la la_

Clarisse's scream brought Mia on the run. She knew exactly what was wrong though, Charlotte had just told her the news as well. He'd died of a broken heart. Entering her grandmother's suite she found the older woman on the floor, with Charlotte beside her, sobbing for all it was worth. Dropping to her knees next to them, she pulled them both into a hug and the three women tried their best to deal with their loss.

The funeral was small, but quite lovely, Clarisse made sure of that. As the others at the funeral watched her, tears streaming down her face, they suddenly realized who the woman in Joseph's note was. Long after the funeral was over, Clarisse stood under the tree, the branches forming a curtain around her, grieving for her lost love.

_The rumors flew_

_But nobody knew how much she blamed herself_

_For years and years_

_She tried to hide the whisky on her breath_

_She finally drank her pain away, _

_A little at a time_

_But she never could get drunk enough to get him off her mind_

Everyone at the palace knew that their former Queen would never be the same. It was obvious in the way that she drifted from room to room, going about her duties in a daze, as if she didn't really know what she was even doing, it was simply routine. Charlotte and Mia began to notice that she was leaving paperwork unfinished. The cook questioned some of the maids after yet another bottle vanished from the cabinet.

Not long after, Mia was left to run Genovia on her own.

_Until the night_

_She put that bottle to her head_

_And pulled the trigger_

_And finally drank away his memory_

_Life is short_

_But this time it was bigger_

_Than the strength she had to get up off her knees_

_We found her with her face down in the pillow_

_Clinging to his picture for dear life_

_We laid her next to him beneath the willow_

_While the angels sang a whisky lullaby_

All of Genovia was in mourning for the loss of their much adored Queen. A grand royal funeral was expected, but this was not the case. Mia with the help of Sebastian Motez, got parliament to agree to bury her, not with the rest of the royal family, but with her beloved Joseph instead.

Mia said goodbye to her grandmother one last time, and just before the casket was closed and sealed, she placed one more thing in with her. A picture of Clarisse and Joseph dancing at the Independence Day Ball in San Francisco. The photo had captured what everyone else had failed to see; how blissfully happy they were right then, and how much they loved each other. It was the one that had been found in her death grip.

_La la la la la la la_

_la la la la la la la _

_Whisky Lullaby isn't mine. It's sung by Brad Paisley and Allison Krauss. _


End file.
